Arab foreign ministers promise support for Iraq

Arab foreign ministers promised their support for Iraq on Wednesday in a gathering that was boycotted by the Iraqi government, angered by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's remarks that Iraqi Shiites are more loyal to Iran than their own country. The Arab League called the meeting to work up ways to form a "united front" to help stabilize the country. But Mubarak's comments this weekend stoked concerns among Iraq's Shiite and Kurdish leaders that the Sunni-dominated league, which is based in Cairo, is biased against them. Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa said Arab nations wanted to help the war-torn country and expressed regret that Iraq had not attended Wednesday.